Hilltop Voices: Are you ready for Hillary?

I am! Clinton's experience and positions on the environment, women's issues and education make her a strong candidate.

Although I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the Presidential Inauguration January 2013, I was unable to vote for the president in 2012. For many students of the Class of 2018 at William Jewell College, the 2016 election will be the first presidential election in which we will be able to vote.

The candidates for the 2016 presidential election are a mystery for both the Democrat and Republican parties. However, Hillary Clinton is the presumed frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination. When asked the question, “Are you ready for Hillary?” I can answer, yes.

There are more notable qualities to Clinton than just her infamous pantsuits. Clinton’s experience in politics, her position on social and fiscal issues and her network of support all make her a strong candidate for the presidency.

Clinton has served as a senator, Secretary of State, First Lady of Arkansas and First Lady of the United States. She is the only first lady to have ever run for office. During her time as First Lady of the United States, Clinton was actively involved in public policy and assisting her husband, Bill Clinton, in the presidency.

Going into the 2016 election, I am looking for a candidate who supports education, women’s rights and renewable energy.

“If we remember how to work and grow together, we can help more families find their footing in the middle class and make sure every one of our kids has a fair shot to climb that ladder of opportunity,” Clinton said.

For me, this ladder of opportunity starts with education in which Clinton has always had an interest. While First Lady of Arkansas, she was chair of the Arkansas Educational Standards Committee and worked to reform Arkansas’ education system. Clinton also served on education-related committees when she was a senator.

Clinton’s proposed agenda includes increasing the number of women who have access to quality education, increased quality and quantity of early childhood education and overall education reform. It is important to me that the next president enacts policies that make quality education in America more accessible and affordable to all students, and increases the quantity and quality of science and math education at all levels of schooling.

Clinton said, “[Equal rights for women and girls is] great unfinished business of the 21st century.”

During her time as Secretary of State, Clinton worked to put women’s rights and human rights on the agenda. Clinton has a strong focus on men and women’s equality in the workplace and at school, which is what I want from a presidential candidate. Clinton not only wants to close the gender gap in education and the workplace in the United States but also internationally.

“When women and girls have the opportunity to participate, we can lift up not just ourselves, but our families, communities, even our countries,” Clinton said.

I am also looking for a candidate that opposes projects such as the Keystone XL Pipeline and will work to increase renewable energy in the United States.

Clinton said, “The science of climate change is unforgiving. The political challenges are also unforgiving. There is no getting around the fact that the kind of ambitious response required to combat climate change is going to be a tough sell at home as well as around the world.”

Clinton has not taken a position on the Keystone XL Pipeline, but she has endorsed increased use of clean energy and reducing CO 2 emissions.

One event that could harm Clinton’s run for office are the attack on the U.S. embassy in Benghazi, Libya in 2012.

The Benghazi attack killed four American citizens, including U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, and led to an investigation of the State Department. Clinton took responsibility for the lapses in security, although she had no direct role in conversations about security prior to the attack. Clinton resigned from the position of Secretary of State Jan. 23, 2013 during her formal testimony.

“As I have said many times since Sept. 11, I take responsibility, and nobody is more committed to getting this right,” Clinton said. “I am determined to leave the state department and our country safer, stronger and more secure.”

She officially stepped down from her position as Secretary of State Feb. 1, 2013.

Recently, it was released that Clinton used a personal email address during her time as Secretary of State, which is another event that could hurt her presidential chances. Clinton has responded to this by urging the public to see and read her emails, which I think was a proper way to handle the situation. Since Clinton is the presumed frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination, this purported scandal may drag on for many months, but in hindsight what Americans should focus on are her potential policies if she is selected as the Democratic presidential candidate.

Hillary Clinton’s experience and positions on important issues make her a viable candidate in my eyes. Her stances on issues that are important to me, such as education, women’s rights and the environment, are what I am looking for in a candidate. Even though it is the beginning of 2015, I would encourage all my fellow students at Jewell to stay caught up and to continute to research candidates so everyone can be informed voters come November 2016.